By CHAD IBBOTSON

Apr 8, 2009‎ - The 6.3-magnitude earthquake that hit central Italy on Monday has Kingston's Italian community rallying in support.

Yesterday, reports had 207 people killed, 1,000 injured and 15 still missing. Rescuers are continuing the search for survivors.

Bruno Iacconi, manager of the Italo-Canadian Club in Kingston, said the club has been trying to contact its members.

"We've been calling everybody so we'll see what we can do. At this point, obviously, we have to get together and start raising money. We'll take donations and we'll send it over," he said. "That's what we're going to do to try to help those poor people over there. They really are in need."

Italo-Canadian Club president Luciana Carfa said that, so far, she hasn't heard much.

"Some members are close to that region. But whether it has affected them in any way, as far as I know, no," Carfa said. "They felt light tremors."

Carfa said the club has been trying to contact its members since Monday to find out the extent of the damage.

"There are a lot of members who live in that province. People would have called me by now," she said.

"I know some people did try to get a hold of their relatives back home and at one time they couldn't get through. But when they did call, their relatives seemed to be okay."

Carfa said she is going to contact the Italian consulate in Toronto to see what they are going to do.

"I want to find out what they're doing," Carfa said. "I have to get in touch with the Italian consulate and speak to him and see what the situation is like in Toronto, or what are they doing, where are they directing the funds or how they're going about it."

Carfa said the club is going to drum up some support and do whatever they can to help.

"After all, we are Italians, we have to stick together," Carfa said. "I'm calling an executive meeting to see what we can do -- obviously we'll be doing something."

Charity organizations have already gotten involved, said Dave Hallett, a representative for ShelterBox Canada.

"About four months ago this weekend, the (Junior Chamber Intertnational) and Interval house and ShelterBox Canada held our shelter challenge where 16 hearty souls slept out in front of City Hall for 48 hours in -25 C weather. They raised enough money to purchase three shelter boxes and those shelter boxes are this morning being delivered to the earthquake zone," said Hallett.

The organization provides supplies to those who have been displaced by natural disasters. The survival box, which Hallett describes as a large, green Rubbermaid container, contains a 10-person tent, sheets, blankets, pots, pans, a camping stove and water purification tablets. Hallett said the boxes cost about $1,200 Canadian.

The boxes are shipped from the organization's base in the United Kingdom in containers that hold about 224 boxes.

The ShelterBox website says 50 tents have already been set up in the village of Assergi, which is 20 kilometres from the town of L'Aquila and close to the epicentre of the earthquake in Italy.

Hallett said the boxes were designed to accommodate an extended family for the first six months after a disaster and 224 boxes is enough to hold more than 2,000 people.

Hallett is also one of three Canadians who are trained to be part of the emergency response team that delivers the boxes. Hallett went to Somaliland in Africa in 2007 and to China in 2008 as part of ShelterBox's emergency response team.

"Every time I hear about a disaster, it's very personal because I probably know some of the people that are going there to deliver aid right away," Hallett said.

Hallett said ShelterBox was created to fill a void in international aid.

"There are lots of other charities out there who are good at what they do. When you look at those organizations, you'll see they kind of specialize in something. There was this gap in emergency relief around shelter," he said. "The UN was supplying tarps that we would buy at Canadian Tire or something and giving those to people."

Hallett said a Rotarian named Tom Henderson from the U. K. thought up and developed the idea for ShelterBox.

Since 2001, the charity has sent out more than 30,000 boxes to countries around the world to help with disaster relief.

To donate to ShelterBox, go to www.shelterbox.ca.

Source: The Kingston Whig-Standard 

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